module specification

In this module you will explore and practice styling within fashion journalism and related industries and critically analyse the relationship between the media and the fashion industry and the position of a multi-skilled fashion journalist and stylist within these industries. Thus, this module aims to develop both your practical skills expected by the fashion and media industries and the analytical skills implied by the higher education in journalism and fashion marketing.

Your practical training will focus on developing employable skills through producing styling and journalistic output in the variety of genres and formats that are expected by the industry – from researching, writing to brief and producing multimedia packages to resourcing looks and products to specific real-life briefs.

You will learn how to style to brief and to budget (for example, for cocktail parties, launch events, red carpets), how to promote your work through social media posts, and how to produce content on the intersection of journalism and styling, mainly through magazine articles and features. You will also learn how to critically analyse the work of others within the industry and examine the industry-specific and global cultural implications of their work.

In class, you will learn through a combination of lectures, practical classes and seminars, and weekly styling and journalism tasks. You will be assessed through a styling project presented through social media, a portfolio of 5 pieces of writing with multimedia elements, and an online journal.

This module focuses on developing styling and journalism skills as employability skills for fashion journalists.

Students will study styling within the fashion and journalism industry in context: the nature and meaning of fashion, how stylists are used within the fashion business environment, and how multi-skilled journalists work within both fashion media and fashion industries. [LO1, LO3, LO4, LO5].

Students will learn who uses stylists and how, the logistic of styling work from photoshoots to media and social media work. [LO1, LO3, LO4].

Students will practice styling, writing about the process of styling for social media and fashion news media, and creating multi-media content related to styling and fashion. [LO1, LO2, LO4]

Workshop-based classes and independent learning will target both practical and analytical skills and encourage reflection on the learning process and the meaning, practices and ethics of styling work, with the aim of fostering creativity, confidence and social responsibility within the student community and in the future workspaces

The module will be taught by a programme of weekly sessions, comprising a three-hour block for each of the weeks in which it runs. Learning and teaching strategy will be based on an interactive practice-oriented model.

Teaching methods include lectures, workshops, guest speakers, seminar discussion and tutorials.  Workshops will focus on producing real journalism-compatible styling within class and outside it. Students are expected to attend and encouraged to participate in the sessions.

In seminars, workshops and tutorials they are expected to raise issues, ask questions and seek and offer feedback to enable them to reflect on practice. Practical work will include working on catwalks and shoots, writing to brief and styling a partner. Engagement week and newsweeks, field trips, guest speakers and screenings will complement the syllabus, as will one-to-one tutorial and coaching sessions.

Tutorials and formative assessments will take place to prepare students for the summative assessments.

Electronic resources, including the university’s VLE and its tools, will be used by students and staff. VLE will contain notes, slides, readings, and weblinks related to the weekly teaching session topics.
Independent reflective study, including reading and styling and writing exercises, will form the backbone of every session. In addition to guided reading, students are expected to read and follow media and fashion media critically.

On successful completion of this module, having completed all the tasks set, students should be able to:

LO1. Use a range of specialised techniques and skills in fashion journalism and styling, from researching and writing to resourcing products;
LO2. Create content that serves different purposes and genres, as well as different platforms and publications;
LO3. Critically analyse fashion-related styling across media for its cultural and commercial significance;
LO4. Communicate a critical understanding of the specialist expectations and context of the fashion journalism for stylists, through sharp and focused writing and creation of fashion shoots and/or events styling;
LO5. Show how their work has made them more employable, through a portfolio of work and on social media.

Core and additional reading lists:

https://rl.talis.com/3/londonmet/lists/7C8BE72D-91FE-DD56-4D1E-6AE9CA7ABA9A.html?lang=en&login=1